UCF - No. 27 SMU stats
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (UCFKnights.com) - The UCF men's tennis season came to an end in the quarterfinals of the 2016 American Athletic Conference Championships. The sixth-seeded Knights dropped a 4-0 decision to No. 27 SMU at the Dunavant-Wellford Tennis Center on Friday.
The Mustangs, who earned the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament, captured the doubles point with wins on courts one and two.
Three Knights grabbed opening set wins to provide a spark in singles, but SMU extended its lead to 2-0 with a straight-set win at No. 3 singles. A Mustang win at No. 5 singles pushed the SMU advantage to 3-0.
Junior Inaki Espindola handed No. 105 Nate Lammons a 6-2 loss in the opening set, but Lammons rebounded with a 6-4 win in set two and 6-1 win in set three to seal the SMU victory.
Junior Chris Barrus topped No. 61 Hunter Johnson, 6-4, in the opening set and held a 6-5 edge in the second set when the match ended. Junior Mariano Porter won his opening set, 6-1, and was playing the decisive third set when SMU clinched its victory.
UCF concluded its season with a 9-13 overall record.
Coaches Corner
"We are proud of the guys' effort today versus a good team. They jumped on us early in doubles to gain momentum.
"We responded winning 3 of 5 first sets in singles. (We only used 5 courts due to maintenance issues.) We were gaining momentum. Credit to a top 30 team who responded like champs. They put the clamps on us.
"Our focus now is to finish the academic semester as best we can. Then we prepare for the summer season which lays the foundation for a successful fall 2016 season."
No. 27 SMU 4, UCF 0
Singles competition
1. #105 Nate Lammons (SMU) def. Inaki Espindola (UCF) 2-6, 6-4, 6-1
2. #61 Hunter Johnson (SMU) vs. Chris Barrus (UCF) 4-6, 5-6, unfinished
3. Samm Butler (SMU) def. Jose Sangroniz (UCF) 6-1, 6-1
4. Markus Kerner (SMU) vs. Mariano Porter (UCF) 1-6, 6-4, 5-0, unfinished
5. Ronald Slobodchikov (SMU) def. Nicolo De Fraia (UCF) 6-3, 6-0
6. Yates Johnson (SMU) vs. Reece Acree (UCF) 5-2, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #26 Hunter Johnson/Yates Johnson (SMU) def. Inaki Espindola/Chris Barrus (UCF) 6-2
2. Nate Lammons/Markus Kerner (SMU) def. Tyler Pate/Reece Acree (UCF) 6-3
3. Samm Butler/Ronald Slobodchikov (SMU) vs. Jack Thiessen/Mariano Porter (UCF) 4-3, unfinished
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (3,5,1)